About Building Bridges

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2 About Building Bridges The Building Bridges Foundation is a not-for-profit organization established in the Netherlands. The mission is to foster youth-led solutions from the grassroots in order to contribute towards the effective implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. The first project of the Building Bridges Foundation included a cycle tour from Amsterdam to Cape Town to bring the voice of young people from all walks of life to the United Nations. More importantly, a youth network that covers three continents and twenty-one countries was created and will now be actively involved in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. The project reached out to over 15 million people online, was discussed in the UN Security Council and broadcasted on national TV in more than eight countries. Key to the first project, and the Building Bridges Foundation in general, is the multi- stakeholder approach that brings together youth organisations, governments, NGO s, UN entities, media and the private sector. We believe that only by working together with all stakeholders, we can achieve a more just, sustainable and equal world in 2030.

3 About Building Bridges

4 Youth voices

5 VIDEO Road to Nairobi Tanzania

6 Working on a better future The state of youth entrepreneurship in Southern and Eastern Africa as a solution for youth unemployment. Extra focus on the agricultural sector. December 2016

7 Why care about African youth entrepreneurs? 197 million people unemployed globally in 2015 Underemployment, working poverty and poor job quality Every year 12 million African youth enter the job market to compete for 3 million formal jobs In Africa youth population rising rapidly Youth entrepreneurship argued to be sustainable partial solution to high unemployment rate and other social problems 60% of the youth consider becoming entrepreneurs

8 About this research Grassroots approach 8 different countries Bring their voices and experiences to the policy formulation table 328 survey respondents 80 visits for intensive follow-up interviews between 1-3 hours.

9 Surveyed youth entrepreneurs

10 Significance of youth entrepreneurs

11 Challenges faced by youth entrepreneurs

12 Challenges faced by youth entrepreneurs How do youth receive startup capital?

13 What about the agricultural sector? 32 of the 287 respondents in agriculture 9 of them are not registered (24 faced competition from unregistered businesses) 7 of the 32 are female Youngest respondent 19, Oldest respondent 32, Average 26,66 Employed 237 people (7,4 on average)

14 Significance of youth entrepreneurs in the agricultural sector: 26 wanted to play a larger role in society 22 started business cos identified business opportunity 3 unhappy with previous job 3 friends who had started businesses 2 unable to find stable decent job

15 What is the biggest problems of youth entrepreneurs in the agricultural sector: 11 bureaucracy & corruption 8 registration and administration process and policies 4 miss entrepreneurial support 2 lack of entrepreneurship education 2 find access to finance and assets 1 time, takes long 1 tax 1 lack of access to information

16 Challenges faced by youth entrepreneurs What about the agricultural sector? Out of 32 respondents: 30 face issue of access to finance 13 Infrastructure (based in remote areas, bad roads etc.) 12 access to land 7 Tax 5 business licensing and permits 4 corruption 4 crime 2 gender

17 What do youth entrepreneurs in the agricultural sector miss? 23 miss business connections 20 lack good ICT infrastructure (lacking in rural areas) 17 missing mentoring opportunities 16 lack business training 11 miss adequate workspace 9 lack knowledge of available business support services

18 About finance: Most of them are self-financed (23), family financed (10), friends or community financed (8) 21 approached investors, 8 were succesful 14 approached a financial institution for loan or credit, 7 were succesful Biggest challenges to acces finance: 12 strict requirements 10 collateral 5 lack of business skills 7 lack of support or trust in youth

19 Solutions by youth in the agricultural sector: 13 find that government can help with access to finance and assets 11 have entrepreneurship education 11 support for youth entrepreneurs 4 access to information 3 ease the registration process 3 provide tax exemptions 3 access to markets

20 Solutions by youth entrepreneurs South Africa Kenya Malawi Mozambique

21 Want to find out more? Final report available in February/March 2017 Leave your businesscard for the final version

22 Thank you Teun Meulepas, Building Bridges co-founder